It will be appreciated that flight simulators attempt to replicate, as much as possible, an actual aircraft cockpit with instruments and a surrounding canopy. It is also desirable for the simulator—of any type—to provide a simulator dome with a display medium that provides as realistic as possible “outside-the-window” visual representations. Accordingly, the display medium or the surfaces upon which images are displayed or projected are quite large.
Current display technology has made great strides in reducing the space required for dome displays in flight simulators. Smaller projectors, for example, have reduced the interior space required for mountings and displays. However, a cockpit and its mounting dome itself, plus the projectors and their mountings must still fit within the space allocated to the display. It will be appreciated that in addition to general operational training, flight simulators are used to rehearse combat missions and bombing runs. Oftentimes, these rehearsals must take place on aircraft carriers or hastily constructed forward operating bases. As such, large spaces to accommodate known display domes for simulators are unavailable. It will also be appreciated that even slight modifications to the dome can result in negative training during a mission rehearsal.
Accordingly, the need exists for a simulator dome that provides customers an affordable product that fits in a relatively small space. And there is a need for a simulator dome with reduced size that provides a realistic training experience.